Coruscant loomed into view as Jaina dropped into realspace. Jag was sitting next to her, having grown tired of resting and recovering from his injuries. She felt the presence of her mother there. Jaina had commed her a couple of hours before and told her that she was coming home. Her father was down there, too, joyful at the prospect of seeing his only daughter return, but weary that it may be the last time she ever would.
Jaina, too, had grown weary, but for completely different reasons. It had been ten days since Jacen's death, and she still had no answers. She lusted for revenge…but against whom? Or what? And when she found out, how far would she go? She had stepped into the dark side once before; would she fall again?
No, she refused to become a monster. All she wanted was to make her brother's murderer pay.
A landing pad came into view, and Jaina switched her ship's radio frequency. "Control, this is Colonel Jaina Solo with the Galactic Alliance military, requesting permission to land."
"Permission granted," came the reply on that frequency. "Continue on your current course."
She pulled her yoke back and felt the ship decelerating as it continued to speed toward the strip, which became bigger by the second.
"Where'd you get this ship?" Jagged asked.
"Hapes," she said. "It was one of the few that was actually flyable." She, of course, meant flyable without repairs needed. She could probably fix up any of the ships attacked there, but that meant time, and she needed to get off of that planet as soon as she could.
The freighter hit the ground and slowed to a stop at the end of the strip. "That was easy," she said, happy for the break in action. She wasn't ready for another battle.
She went to the back and grabbed Allana, and as the three of them exited the vessel, Jaina sent a message to her mother through the Force, letting her know that she was on the planet.
Then she felt her mother's presence, and realized that her parents were in the spaceport, waiting for her. She sighed, both relieved at the thought at seeing them, but also wondering what she was going to do about Allana. Neither of them knew that she was their granddaughter, and she had planned to break the news to them gently. Now, though, as soon as Leia saw Allana, she would know the truth.
Jaina picked up the girl in her arms and Allana started to cry. "I want Mommy!" she said.
Jaina felt the tears coming to her own eyes, and set her niece down. Allana was still too young to understand what had happened at Hapes, and she refused to accept that Tenel Ka was gone. Jaina didn't know how to make her believe it without breaking both of their hearts.
They walked toward the street, Allana grudgingly holding Jaina's hand, when Han and Leia Solo came into view. Han rushed to her and hugged her as tightly as he could. Jaina reciprocated, wrapping her arms around his waist. She didn't realize how much she had missed him. She couldn't help but start sobbing.
"I tried to save him, Dad," she said into his shoulder. "I couldn't, but I swear I tried."
If it was even possible, her father enveloped her more, and Jaina realized that he, too, had tears streaming down his cheeks.
"You're alive, and safe," he said. "Right now, that is all that matters."
He released her, and Jaina saw her mother looking at Allana, and it was clear that she had come to the right conclusion. There was no point in hiding the truth from them any longer.
"Mom, Dad, this is Allana," she said. "Tenel Ka's daughter…and Jacen's. Your granddaughter."
Leia's eyes met Jaina's. "How is that possible?" her mother asked.
Jaina shook her head. "I don't know." She knew what Leia meant. Jacen had been at the Jedi academy when Allana was supposedly conceived. Still, Tenel Ka was a Jedi. If she wanted to conceal Allana's paternity, she certainly had ways to do it.
Han stared at the little girl for what seemed like an eternity, and Jaina could see the shock passing through his body. Leia squeezed Allana's shoulder, trying to see what kind of response she'd get if she picked her up and hugged her. She finally decided to kneel down in front of her and wrap Allana in her arms.
Allana, strong in the Force as she was, felt the benevolence of Leia's presence. She returned her hug. "Where's Mommy?" she asked again. "I can't feel her no more."
Han put a hand over his mouth, trying to conceal the emotions forming. Leia looked up at Jaina, asking without speaking why she hadn't told the girl of Tenel Ka's death.
"Is Mommy gone?" Allana said.
Jaina rubbed a hand through Allana's hair. "Sweetheart," she said, "your mommy's…she's in the Force."
"Does that mean I'll never see her again?"
Jaina leaned down and met her eyes. "You'll see her again, but not for a long time. She'll always be with you, even if you can't see her with your eyes or hear her with your ears, she's still there."
But Allana only shook her head at this. "I can't feel her," she said.
"You will," said Jaina, touching Allana's heart. "She's in there."
Jaina felt a comforting hand on her own shoulder. It was Jag, and it was the warmest she had felt his presence since rescuing him from Tenupe. Obviously Jag had harbored hard feelings toward her after what happened with Lowbacca.
It was then that Han noticed his daughter's companion. "Colonel Fel," he said. "I take it this isn't some romantic rendezvous with my daughter." His words were a warning.
Jag quickly removed his hand from Jaina. "No, sir," he said. "I was marooned on Tenupe for two years, and was attacked shortly before your daughter found me. She saved my life by getting me to a bacta tank and bringing me here." Jaina noticed that there was only a hint of gratitude in his voice.
Luckily, Han dropped the matter. "I'm glad you're alive, kid," he said.
Jaina decided that it was time to drop the greetings. There was someone that she desperately needed to see. "Have you guys heard from Luke?"
The silence that met her ears gave her an answer. Jaina sighed. Luke had all but disappeared after Mara had been killed, six months ago. He had learned how to hide himself in the Force, and no one knew what he was up to anymore.
Mara's death was hard for all of them, Jaina included. But she had just starting to heal when Jacen died. She doubted Luke had.
"I have Jacen's…" Jaina's voice trailed off. She inhaled and exhaled and tried again. "I have his body."
An uncomfortable silence came between them, and Jaina felt the fullness of her parents'
misery. Han merely nodded, but Leia made no motion whatsoever. The entire situation reminded all of them too much of…Anakin. None of them had ever escaped the fear that they'd have to go through it again, but it didn't lessen the pain.
"Is Jacen in the Force like Mommy?"
Jaina couldn't answer that question, and felt a lump in her throat. Han shuffled the girl's hair in order to comfort her. Jaina could swear that he was holding back tears. Jaina wasn't, though. Her tears were flowing freely down her face. So were Leia's. She could feel Jag's discomfort.
Allana didn't wait for a spoken answer to ask her next question. "Was Jacen really my Daddy, like you said?"
She spoke this one to Jaina specifically. There was no use keeping it a secret from her anymore, Jaina figured, and she said, "Yes, he was."
"Come on," said Han quietly. "Let's go home."
Jaina doubted she had ever been so glad to hear those words. The five of them headed for Han and Leia's new apartment in one of Coruscant's beautiful skyscrapers. They conversed together on the way, talking about flying and racing and other subjects that seemed utterly meaningless in the circumstances, and that was why they were so welcomed. Allana didn't say a word on the way. Jaina thought that it was better that way. Nothing like a two-year-old to bring them all back to reality.
When they finally reached the indoor entrance to the Solos' apartment, Leia put her hand up to the print-reader, and after a red scanner passed across the reader, the metal door flew up.
None of them took a step forward, the shock of what they were seeing not setting in. The living room was in shambles; the built in couch was overturned; tables and chairs were thrown all over the place, some broken into pieces – particular the ones made of glass. Clothes, artifacts, keepsakes, were everywhere. Leia's most treasured possession, the painting Killik Twilight, was face down in the middle of the floor.
"I take it we're not staying here," Jaina said after moments of silence.
"I take it not," said Han. He turned to his family. "We should get to the Falcon, and go someplace safe."
Warning bells went off in Jaina's head and, she took it, in Leia's, as well. "I'm not sure that would be wise," her mother said.
"Why not?" Han asked.
This time it was Jag who spoke, breaking his own silence. "Think. Whoever did this knew where you lived, even though you've just moved in. It is probable that they've put a homing beacon on the Falcon to track your movements."
"Then we'll search the ship, find the beacon and destroy it," Han said.
"Good idea," said Jaina. "Jag and I will do that, we'll take Allana to the Taris undercity. That's not a place they'll look. Meanwhile, you and Mom should take my ship and go somewhere remote. Like Hoth, or Dantooine."
Leia shook her head. "No," she said. "We're leaving the Falcon here. If we remove the homing beacon, whoever this is will be alerted that that we're here." She breathed in, and Jaina knew that she was about to suggest something Jaina was not going to like. "Han and I will stay here," she said, "and try to sort this out. You, take Jag and Allana and go to Taris in your ship. We'll comm you when it is safe for you to come home for Jacen's funeral."
Jaina felt her heart drop. There was not a word that Leia said that she liked. "I want to fight, Mom," she said. "You know that whoever did this is whoever killed him. Don't leave me out of this."
"You'll have your chance to fight," Leia said. "But now you are responsible for a life other than your own, and you must keep her safe at all costs."
Jaina turned her head to Allana, who was terrified. She reached out to her in the Force, embracing the young girl in her presence, promising her that they'd be okay. "Okay," Jaina agreed. She felt a pang of sadness at leaving her parents again, so soon after being reunited with them.
Han nodded toward her, acknowledging her compromise. She could feel his worry. "We'll get them, sweetheart," he said. "You'll be back here in no time."
Jaina made every effort to believe him. She knew, though, that the danger they had found themselves in had just begun. She just hoped that they could get out of it in one piece.
--
As Jag studied Jaina's stolen craft for the first time since Hapes, he realized what a pile of junk it was. He now knew why it hadn't been destroyed; why even bother with it? With this realization also came the concession that there was no way they were going to get to Taris on it. Or, at least, not if it's pilot had a surname that wasn't Solo.
Jaina's thoughts, apparently, were not along these same lines as she closed the ship's fuel gate. She was just about to board the ship when a voice called out from the balcony of the docking bay.
"Jaina!"
The voice belonged to a redheaded boy who looked to be about ten-years old. Instead of getting on the ship, Jaina started running up the steps toward him. "Ben!" she called.
Jag suddenly knew who the kid was: Ben Skywalker. Jaina's cousin. The son of Luke Skywalker, savior of the galaxy. His eyes widened at seeing the boy. Jag had met Ben when he was only weeks old, but he hadn't seen him since. Jag was shocked by just how much time had passed since the Yuuzhan Vong war, though the galaxy remained affected by it greatly.
For a moment, Jag considered making his way to the cockpit and making some last-minute calculations while waiting for Jaina to board. He soon decided against it, and not just for the little girl who was sitting in his lap. Instead, he eavesdropped on Jaina and Ben, a trait he had perfected under the tutelage of his former flame herself.
"What are you doing here?" Jaina asked.
"Our house was completely raided," Ben explained. "Dad sent me to find you and said to get off-planet as soon as I could."
"How did he know where I was?" Jaina asked him.
"I don't think he did…exactly. He just felt that you guys were in trouble, too, and sent me to find someone – either you or Uncle Han and Aunt Leia."
Jaina began to lead him down the stairs. "Well, you're in luck, kid," she said. "We were just about to get out of here. Come with us and don't ask questions."
When Jaina and Ben reached the ship, Ben's eyes went immediately toward Allana. "Who are you?" he asked her, completely tactless.
"Allana," the girl said very quietly.
"This is your cousin, Ben," Jaina said, "and I don't believe you've met Jagged Fel. Jag, this is my cousin Ben." Jag nodded at him curtly and Ben waved. "On the ship, Ben," Jaina ordered.
"Can I fly it?" Ben asked. Jag shook his head at Ben's audacity. Jaina didn't bother, but he could tell that she felt like it.
"No," she said without any hesitation.
"Dad lets me fly all the time!" Ben argued.
"Get on the ship," Jaina said again. Grunting, Ben did as he was told. "Take Allana with you."
When the kids had boarded, Jaina turned toward Jag. "You up to being my co-pilot?" she asked.
Jag raised his eyebrows. He didn't want to admit it, even to himself, but he was extremely happy she had asked the question. He had almost expected her to assume that he was too hurt, that he needed rest, that she could handle the flying herself. He knew that her asking meant that she really did want him beside her. She was about the only person who found him useful at all.
"You don't expect me to lie around the entire flight?" he asked.
"Of course not," Jaina said, and the two went into the cockpit.
"Do we have clearance to leave?" Jag asked after he had strapped himself into the co-pilot's seat. It was a question Jag wouldn't have asked with anyone else flying beside him; but Jaina was her father's daughter, and to her, those kind of rules were merely suggested guidelines.
To his surprise, Jaina looked offended. "We have a thirty-minute window."
"Starting now?"
"No, starting thirty-two minutes ago," Jaina answered. Jag merely rolled his eyes at her. "Well, Ben held me up!" Jaina had to explain. Jag said nothing, again, and Jaina started the ship up. "Speaking of, can you take off and plot a hyperspace course? I should check on them."
"Sure thing, Goddess," Jag said. He used the term jokingly, and she shot him a murderous look and turned around, walking to the back. In his mind, Jag reprimanded himself. Years ago, he had fallen in love with Jaina Solo – she was the only woman for whom he had ever let his guard down.
Now, though, he wanted to forget that he had ever loved this woman. He had never totally blamed her for being exiled from his family and his people. At the same time, whenever someone under his command had acted as recklessly as Lowbacca had, he always expected to take full responsibility for their actions, whatever they may have been.
He pushed his yoke forward and the ship shot out of the docking bay. He pulled it back and soon he was watching the Coruscant sky turn from blue to black, and the stars became visible. Safe as it was to now enter jump coordinates, he turned on the navcomputer.
He wasn't sure why exactly he had felt so hostile to Jaina in the first place, much less why those feelings were fading away now that he was with her again. Perhaps, he reasoned, it was because he was grateful that she saved his life.
Hutt spit, he thought to himself. He was far from happy to be alive and well.
Knock it off, his thoughts continued to wage war in his mind. This kind of depression doesn't suit you.
He finished plotting the jump and pushed the computer aside. Just as he was doing so, Jaina appeared again in the cockpit.
"Kids strapped in?" he asked.
"Yeah, they are, but we have a change in plans," she said.
Jag felt his jaw drop ever so slightly and wondered what Jaina was up to. Instead of filling him in, she started to input her own coordinates in the computer that Jag had just used. Irritation at her filled Jag to his chest. Yes, she may have rescued him, but they were military equals – and he was not going to let her keep him out of the loop.
"We're not going to Taris," she started, as if she could hear his thoughts. "At least not right away. We're going to Manaan, and there we'll rest you in kolto for a couple of hours. Then we're going to Corellia and dumping this ship – which, by the way, I've named Anakin's Star – at Mom and Dad's private docking bay. Then we'll take a refugee freighter to Taris, using aliases, of course, and then we'll take shelter in the undercity. Piece of cake, right?"
For a moment, Jag just stared at her. "You've really thought this through," he commented.
"Well, yeah," said Jaina.
"So, what's changed – you, or the situation?"
She sighed, and suddenly Jag feared her answer. "I sense danger," she said. "And I don't mean like bounty hunter danger or even planetary danger. I mean, something's out there, and it's a threat to the entire galaxy, and until we know what it is, we need to do everything we can to stay safe. To keep them – " she gestured to the back, where Ben and Allana were – "safe." She finished plotting the jump. "And to keep you safe."
"I can take pretty good care of myself," said Jag.
"So could Anakin and Jacen, and look what happened to them."
Jag didn't respond to that, but things made somewhat better sense to him at that point. He knew what it was like to lose a family member, and he had seen within his own family how it could change people. He had seen Jaina change after such an event once before, and now he was seeing her change again.
But Jag didn't want to admit to her just yet that he shared her grief. There would be too much understanding between them, and he still hadn't sorted out his feelings toward her. So, he changed the subject. "The Anakin's Star? Why didn't you name the ship after Jacen?"
"I didn't name it after my brother," Jaina said, "but my grandfather."
Jag's eyes narrowed. Now that was a surprise. Jaina was the one member of the Solo family – other than Han – that wasn't haunted by the memory of Anakin Skywalker and the legacy he left behind.
"I know, it doesn't make much sense," she said. "I just thought, even if he was Darth Vader, he created something good. My mom and Uncle Luke, and they turned out okay, didn't they? He's kind of the forefather of my mom's family – in the Force, I mean."
He nodded. "I almost understand your reasoning," he said.
"It's hard to explain," said Jaina.
"So I take it." He left it at that. Through the window, the stars became elongated strips of light, and then they disappeared and the craft managed to make the jump to light speed. He still felt a bit disappointed that she had not used the course he had set, nor had she apologized to him for not using it.
Oh, come on, he thought, she saved your neck, didn't she?
"Why didn't you tell me about this danger you sensed before?" he asked after he had unstrapped his belt.
"Because I didn't sense it until I meditated after I strapped Allana and Ben in," she answered.
"You meditated?" Jag could not help but chuckle a bit at that. Jaina was far from the kind of Jedi her twin brother had been once – introspective and questioning every aspect of the Force and his destiny. She preferred taking action to discussing the moral ramification of any action she might take. It was one of the things he had loved about her.
"Yeah, I did," she said. "I was about to explode. I had to."
He made a small noise of affirmation and didn't say anything more. An awkward silence fell between them, and that was when Ben decided to come up to the cockpit. He touched Jaina's shoulder as if he were interrupting something important. "Allana's hungry," he said.
"Very well," said Jaina, and she left once again, and Jag was alone in the cockpit with a 10-year-old boy who sat down in the pilot's seat.
"Jaina's never had a real ship of her own before," he said. He quickly retracted that statement, much to Jag's amusement. "She did – kinda – used to have an x-wing, but that was just a one-seater. This is so astral!"
This time, Jag actually laughed. He was beginning to like this kid – perhaps because of his sense of adventure, or because he used words like "astral."
"Where'd she get this, anyway?" Ben asked him. The kid certainly wasn't shy. Jag hadn't said a word to him and it was as if Ben hadn't even noticed.
"She took it from the Hapes spaceport during the attack."
"She stole it?" Ben's tone wasn't one of admonishment, but of excitement. "Astral!" he said again.
Smiling, Jag got up. Before he left, he turned to the kid, who had grabbed the yoke and was pretending to fly. "Hey, have you ever played Sabacc?" Jag asked him, a sly grin overcoming his features.
--
"I don't know if this is smart," Han said as he flew his speeder through the airways of Coruscant, his wife in the passenger seat. "He may be our friend and your brother, but there's something different about him."
Leia nodded, looking straight ahead as if she were the one driving. "I agree. I can feel it in the Force. But bear in mind that he is still grieving."
Han rolled his eyes at that. "Yeah, I wonder what it's like to grieve," he said. He hadn't meant for them to, but the words seemed to cut a whole through his heart. That was impossible, though, because it would mean that his heart wasn't already shattered.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Leia shoot him a look of reproach. He pretended to ignore it, but he understood exactly what she was trying to say. Yes, he was sorry about Mara Jade, and yes, he understood that the pain Luke was going through was unfathomable to most people, but no, unfortunately, Han wasn't one of the lucky ignorant ones, and neither was Leia. That was why, Han gathered, Leia felt confident that they could approach Luke at this time.
"How's Jaina?" he asked, knowing that Leia would be able to sense if she were in any danger – or if something even worse had happened.
Leia closed her eyes for a moment, and then opened them again. "She's fine, and safe, for the moment," she said.
He was glad she hadn't mentioned that he had asked that question three times in twenty minutes. He had seen her, at times when he hadn't asked, close her eyes as if reaching out into the Force, and when she opened them again, he saw the relief spelled on her features. She would then tell him that everything was fine, and he believed her.
But he was dreading the moment when things would not be all fine, and Leia would feel it. It could happen at any minute, any second, so every time he saw her close her eyes like that, he braced himself for the worst.
Every few minutes or so a longing would come over him, a desperate craving, to, just once, be able to use the Force to communicate with his daughter – his little girl and only living child – and to feel her warmth even as they were light-years apart. Instead, he had to rely on Leia and her interpretation of the situation.
"Why Luke?" Han asked finally, after skirting around the question throughout the entire ride. "We haven't heard from him in weeks. He didn't even try to contact you when Jacen…when he died. You said that you couldn't feel him, that he was hiding."
Leia didn't answer right away. She leaned her head forward slightly and put her hand up to her forehead. "I think he needs us," Leia said at last. "And I think we need him. He has information of some sort, you know he does. This is Luke we're talking about."
"Information?" That word was funny to Han. So hallow, so meaningless. What were they going to do with that? "Listen, sweetheart, there are only a few things I need to know right now – one, that you and Jaina are safe and will continue to be safe. Two, who killed my boy, and three, where the fierfek they are and how I can get there as fast as possible. And they have to be close by. You can't tell me that whoever trashed our apartment are not the same people who killed him. I don't want kriffing information, I want a location!"
He had almost expected a reprimand from Leia after his tirade, but was disappointed. Indeed, he would have welcomed one, if only so he could have an argument with his wife and not think about his children for just a moment. "I feel the same way," she said, and her agreement was even better than any argument he could have thought of. "We'll find them."
"It can't be quick," said Han, a brand new craving filling him: a craving for revenge. Leia had always disapproved of such things, but she said nothing against Han's words or feelings.
"It won't be," Leia promised. "But in order to find them, we have to first – "
"I know, I know. We have to see Luke," Han said. The speeder took a sharp right turn, and when it did, Han caught the surprised look in Leia's eyes and he knew that it hadn't been from anything he had said. "Princess, what's wrong?"
Leia shook her head. "It's Jaina." Han's insides twisted. "She's fine, Han. But she's worried about us. She feels something wrong. And then she broke the connection, that's all I got."
Han drove the speeder into a parking building and pulled into a space, coming to a stop quickly and turning off the vehicle. "So she sent you a warning?" he inferred. Neither of them made a move to exit the speeder.
"Of sorts," she answered.
"You're sure she's alright?"
Leia put her hand on Han's arm. "The second something goes wrong, I'll let you know. I promise."
Han got out of the speeder very carefully. "I'll hold you to that," he said when his feet were on solid ground.
They walked together into one of the numerous Coruscant housing districts. "I know you will," Leia said.
Han focused on the buildings in front of him. "What if he's not home?" Han asked.
"He is," said Leia, a triumphant smile forming on her lips, "I can feel him."
When they arrived at Luke's apartment, Leia's brother opened the door before they even made their presence known. "Han, Leia," he said, trying to sound welcoming. "It's good to see you again. I was so sorry to hear about Jacen."
Leia was about to accept his condolences, but Han spoke first. "Is that why you haven't contacted us since it happened?" he asked.
She cringed at her husband's rudeness. Of course, she had known about Han's resentment towards Luke, as he hadn't really kept it a secret. She had just hoped Han would choose to remain civil when they did finally meet again. Clearly, that was a lost cause.
"I'm sorry about that, as well," Luke said. "I thought it would be safer for everyone if I cut off our communication. I wanted to explain this to you, but I couldn't risk it. Even you two coming here, it's dangerous."
Leia felt, rather than saw, Han's intrigue rise with her own. "What are you talking about?" he asked, and his tone hadn't lightened at all.
Luke invited them both in his door, and Leia could hardly breathe for what she saw. His house, like her apartment, had been trashed, only it looked much worse. Even the food had been tossed everywhere, creating a strong and not very pleasant smell.
"I'd been expecting something like this to happen sooner or later," Luke said. "They're ready to start."
"Who's ready to start what?" Han asked before she had a chance. She nudged him slightly in order to let him know that she was the diplomat here, not him.
"The enemy," he said. Luke turned around and took a couple strides away from them, as they both wondered when he started to answer questions without telling them anything at all. Then he turned to face them again. "I do not know who it is, and I don't know why they wish to wage war on the Jedi. All I know is what the Force has told me through constant meditation since…since Mara died." Leia felt a hint of pain from her brother at the mention of his lost wife. She forced herself to swallow the sympathetic words that were rising in her throat. "And it has told me a lot. It has revealed a danger to the entire galaxy, a threat that would only begin…with me, you, and our families."
"Jacen and Mara," Leia said, understanding what Luke was saying – as much as he did, anyway. "Jaina tried to warn me about something earlier, through the Force. Do you think that she felt it, as well?"
"It is possible," said Luke. "It is no longer difficult to find in the Force; if she had meditated recently, she would have felt it." He took a step toward them. "I sent Ben after Jaina," he said more quietly. "He's safer with her than he would be with me, or with you."
"Jaina has left the system," said Han. "Are you sure he found her in time?"
Luke smiled at him softly. "I had figured that she would be taking off," he said. "So I told Ben to go to the spaceport. I sense that they are together right now, as well as two other people."
"Jagged Fel and Allana," Leia told him. "Before the attack on Hapes, Jaina rescued Jag on Tenupe. She then saved Allana from Tenel Ka's attackers." Leia took a sharp intake of breath, and then decided to immediately break the truth to him. "Jacen was Allana's father."
At those words, Leia felt a most peculiar sensation from Luke. It was almost like…guilt? Whatever it was, it was only fleeting before Luke completely clamped down on his emotions.
"How do you know?" he asked.
"We've met her," Leia said. "The Force was very clear on that matter."
Beside her, Leia knew Han was annoyed that so much of this conversation centered on the Force. Since he was not Force-sensitive, it took a lot for Leia to convince Han that he was useful for gathering information, even if he used more practical measures than the rest of his family.
"Listen, kid," he said – calling Luke "kid," so her brother would know that even though he may have been a Jedi Master, he was still that rash young farmer's son who had attempted to rescue a rebel princess he didn't know from aboard the Death Star for which he knew he was no match – "someone killed Jacen, and now he or she's still out there, taunting all of us and I can't go to sleep without wondering if I'll ever see my daughter again, so we would like to know if you can sense where his – or her – course is at this moment."
"I can't," said Luke. "They're hiding."
"You didn't even try!" Han argued.
"I am trying, constantly," Luke told him. "I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I can track a person's course without meditating unlike most Force sensitives. This person doesn't want to be found – yet."
Leia felt Han's anger rise and put a hand on Luke's chest, claiming the next comment so Han would not interrupt. His fury was not Luke's fault – he was just mad that he had not gotten what he had come for. "In the meantime," she said, trying to calm everyone down, "I'm sure Jaina will take very good care of Ben."
"She will," Luke said. "I wouldn't have sent him to her if I had thought otherwise. And you two should know that Jaina is in no immediate danger."
Leia backed away from him and stood beside her husband again. "Han and I are going to find a place to hide for the time being," she said. "And I think it would be wise if you did, as well."
Han turned toward her, his eyes narrowed. Leia knew what he was upset about. If there was one thing Han hated almost as much as anyone who threatened their family, it was running away – and that was what they were going to do. Well, he would have to deal with that when they were underground. He was worth much more to her and to Jaina alive than dead.
"I will use the little time we have left to meditate and find some answers," Luke said. "Rest assured that as soon as I know anything, you will, as well."
Leia smiled, and, without warning, engulfed Luke in a hug. "Take care of yourself," she said, and she felt even more tears well up in her eyes. "We'll meet again soon."
When she released him, Han held out a hand to Luke. "Hey, don't try anything stupid," he said as Luke shook it.
Luke laughed. "You're the last person who should give that kind of advice."
Leia and Han walked back to the front door and the three of them exchanged their final farewells. When they had left Luke's house and were making their way back to the speeder, Han wrapped his arms her shoulders – holding on tightly as if he was afraid the wind would blow her away.
--
As Jaina tucked her blankets over her niece, she felt grateful that this ship had exactly four cots –two each in separate rooms. Traveling the course that she had plotted, it was a two-day trip to Manaan. She hadn't wanted to arouse suspicion by going a faster route.
"I'm not sleepy," Allana said.
"You don't have to sleep," Jaina told her. "Just close your eyes while the rest of us do." She reached to turn out the light about the girl's bed, but then pulled her hand back. "Wait a minute. We need to have a talk." She tried to keep her voice stern but friendly, but she wasn't sure if she had succeeded. By the look of fear that Allana now had etched on her face, Jaina thought that she might have come off as more intimidating than she had meant.
"In a couple of days, we're going to be landing on a planet," Jaina continued.
"Is it Hapes?" Allana asked, and Jaina could feel her niece's childlike hopefulness in the Force.
Jaina took a heavy breath in. "No," she said, hating to be the one to disappoint her so much. Hadn't the girl been through enough? "We're going to a different planet, and this one has water everywhere. There are even places where you'll be able to go swimming."
At this, Allana perked up, her smile reaching nearly to her jaws. "Mommy took me swimming once," she said excitedly, "I kept asking her to take me again!"
"Well, if you do what I tell you, I'll take you swimming some time while we are there," Jaina said. "But you have to promise to listen to me." Allana nodded at her intently, having no doubts to doing anything her aunt told her. "Now, when we are on the planet, you need to stay with me, at all times. No walking off. We travel together. If, for whatever reason, I must leave, you stay with Jag – and if he is gone, as well, with Ben."
"What if they go somewhere you don't me to go?" Allana asked.
"They won't," Jaina assured her. She believed those words – mostly, anyway. She trusted that Jag would not endanger her, and knew that Ben would not do it on purpose. Still, Ben was a child himself. Jaina resolved herself to have a talk with Ben later.
"Now, listen up, this part is very important. If you do get separated from us, do not talk to anyone. I will find you, in the meantime, don't act scared – and don't ask for help. You are not to give out our names – and especially not your name – to anyone. If anyone, at any time, tries to grab you or take you with them, scream and cry at the top of your lungs. Did you understand all that?"
Allana nodded again but did not say anything. Jaina wondered how much of that a two-year old would get, though the girl did seem to be remarkably sharp for her age. She figured that if Tenel Ka had wanted to take measures to conceal Allana's paternity, she could have elongated, which would mean that Allana could be roughly three months ahead in development as others her age. Which would give her the aptitude of a child who was almost three, not to mention that she is really intelligent either way.
Regardless of any of that, Jaina wanted to make sure that Allana knew what to do and how to act once they arrived on Manaan. "What are you going to do when we land?"
"Stay wit you," Allana said.
"And if I have to leave?"
"Then I should stay wit Zag or Ben," she answered.
"Very good," Jaina said. "And what if you are alone somewhere?"
"Don' talk to anyone and wait for you."
"What if someone asks for your name?"
"Don' tell them."
"And if someone – other than me, Jag, or Ben, tries to take you with them?"
"Scream!" Allana exclaimed, highly amused by that order. "I can pwactice now if you wan'."
"No, that's alright," Jaina said with a smile. She kissed Allana's forehead. "I'm proud of you."
Then Allana shut her eyes and Jaina pulled out her bed light. There was a knock at the cabin door. "Come on in, Jag," she said, and he did.
"Ben's asleep," he said.
Jaina took her hair down and placed her tie on her bedside table. "He must have been tired," she said. "How did your nine-hour long Sabacc game go?"
Jag shrugged with humility. "He managed to beat me once out of eight games."
"Let me guess – he wasn't quitting until you won, so you, growing tired of Sabacc, decided to go easy on him in the last game?"
"Something like that," he said.
Both of them laughed together, and suddenly Jaina found it difficult to meet his eyes. When she had rescued him, Jaina had finally – however reluctantly – accepted that she might have still been in love with him. Still, his feelings towards her were much cloudier and less friendly. She could feel the ice melting in him, though. Perhaps she would ask him sometime why he had been so distant. He couldn't still be mad about Lowbacca, could he? Because that really wasn't her fault.
She awkwardly scratched at the back of her neck. "I should really get some rest. Everything should be in order with our course," she said. "You should get some sleep, as well. I'll double-check all of the instruments."
"Very well," he said. "I have to admit, I am exhausted."
"I've got news for you, flyboy," she said, "it isn't about to get any easier."
He flashed her a lopsided grin that reminded her so much of her father.
"Just the kind of conditions that I thrive in."